Chapter 8 - Whispers in the Dark
For the next five days, Emma threw herself into her new role with absolute devotion.
Every morning, she helped Isabella take her breakfast in the solarium. They read classic literature together, walked through the rose gardens, and talked for hours. Isabella’s warmth was maternal, filling a void Emma hadn't realized had been aching inside her since her own mother’s death.
“You have a pure heart, Emma,” Isabella remarked one afternoon as Emma gently brushed her silver hair. “Vincent is a hard man. The business world forced him to become a fortress. But since you arrived, I see him watching you. He hasn't looked at anyone with curiosity in a very long time.”
Emma blushed, keeping her eyes focused on the hairbrush. “Mr. Moretti is just ensuring his mother is properly cared for, ma’am.”
“Call me Isabella, dear. And don't underestimate your own light. A dark room always notices a candle.”
While Emma cherished her time with Isabella, she kept Vincent’s warning firmly in mind. She began paying close attention to the household staff.
The estate had over thirty domestic workers, but the one who oversaw Isabella’s immediate care was Mrs. Gable, a stern, tight-lipped head housekeeper who had served the family for nearly twelve years. Mrs. Gable was excessively polite around Vincent, but whenever Vincent left for his downtown headquarters, her demeanor toward Isabella shifted into something cold, almost condescending.
On Thursday afternoon, Emma was tasked with taking Isabella’s prescription logs to the estate’s private pharmacy room to restock her supplements. While walking down the quiet carpeted corridor, she heard hushed voices coming from behind a slightly ajar library door.
“She’s asking questions about the dosage,” a woman’s tense voice whispered. It was Mrs. Gable.
“Then adjust it,” a man’s voice answered over a cell phone speaker. Emma recognized the voice instantly—it was smooth, arrogant, and unmistakably wealthy. Richard Vance. “Vincent has declared war on my company. The SEC is raiding my offices as we speak because of the files he leaked. If Isabella’s trust isn't destabilized before the shareholder vote on Monday, Vance Group is finished!”
“It’s getting harder with that girl around!” Mrs. Gable hissed. “She stays by the old woman’s side day and night! She monitors every meal!”
“Then get rid of the girl,” Richard Vance replied coldly. “Frame her for theft. Slip an heirloom into her bag and call the police. Just get her out of that house before Monday!”
Emma held her breath, her spine turning to ice. Her fingers gripped the medical folder so tightly the plastic cracked.
Before she could step back, her shoe brushed against an antique brass umbrella stand.
*Clink.*
May you like
The whispering inside stopped instantly.
***
